Fast, Furious And Deadly: The Black Mamba Snake
Some names evoke feelings of horror when you hear them, and sometimes, they even belong to the nature world. The black mamba, sometimes also known by the foreign name “Black Mamba,” is an excellent example. Most of you likely know this is one of the most deadly and dangerous snakes worldwide. But even outside the natural world, this term is used for various purposes, including to create a feeling of fear. It’s not for nothing that one of the scariest facilities in some amusement park are called “Black Mamba,” like a super fast rollecoaster ot an elevator that reaches a height of about tens of meters and descends from there by free fall. Several famous movie characters or celebrities have been given this nickname (did anyone say Kobe Bryant?), and there is even a successful brand of Black Mamba scooters – well, scooters are known to be hazardous vehicles.
In the following article, we will explain who is The Black Mamba, why you don’t want to meet it in reality and when can you watch it on the horror world.
What Is Black Mamba Snake?
The Black Mamba (or in the scientific and not colloquial name: “Dendroaspis Polylepis”) is a poisonous snake from the group of mamba snakes, which belongs to the Elapidae family – in which you will find other snakes that are considered deadly, such as cobras and pythons.
The good news is that you can probably rest assured if you are afraid of encountering a black mamba-type snake. You will find the black mamba only in central Africa and in the south, in the area below the Sahara desert, from Eritrea in the northeast to the following Namibia. That is, it is endemic to these areas. As long as you don’t transport them on a plane and they get loose inside it (you can make a horror movie out of it!), in the rest of the world, you should be safe. Assuming you don’t get to Snake Island in Brazil, of course.
The black mamba has several preferred habitats, including savannah areas, forests (especially those near rivers), and rocky hills where it likes to hide. You will sometimes also find the black mamba as tree trunks, in termite mounds, or even on top of trees because it can climb them. Usually, the Black Mamba tends to guard its habitat, but it is not considered a territorial animal. In other words, The snake shouldn’t attack you if you enter the living area as long as you don’t attack it, and sometimes, it’ll even prefer to run away. The problem is that it only takes away a little of the snake’s danger.
How Long Is Black Mamba?
A Black Mamba snake is undoubtedly giant: its length usually reaches around 2.5 meters, but it can also get 4.5 meters. This fact makes it the longest in Africa and second longest snake in the world according to most measures.
In contrast to what one might infer, The Black Mamba color is not black but various shades of brown or gray, with the color becoming lighter as the snake grows. Yes, you will find different black elements on the body of the snake, mainly black dots on the back of the eyes, which have a black or dark brown shade. Still, the origin of the name is generally on the inside of the mouth, characterized by a dark shade between black and blue.
How Deadly Is A Black Mamba?
The black mamba is considered, quite rightly, to be one of the most dangerous snakes in the world. Although from a practical point of view, there are snakes with more deadly venom (the black mamba is in the top ten of the world’s most venomous snakes), quite a few experts regard the black mamba as the most dangerous snake in the world. It can’t be anything else when it combines potent venom, high speed, excellent instincts, and a certain sophistication.
Why Does The Black Mamba Attack? And How?
Black Mamba bite wound puts the victims in clear danger of life unless they receive the appropriate serum very quickly. It will mainly attack during its flight back to the den where it lives, when someone (animal or human) blocks the way there, and, of course, when it feels threatened for one reason or another.
In this case, the complete “ritual” begins in which the black mamba will raise its head, open its mouth, inflate its neck, stick out its tongue, and whistle, the tangible and final sign it wants to attack. Its bites are multiple, fast, and deadly, and unlike some other types of snakes, they are also accurate at high speeds, thanks to the black mamba moving its head forward to about 40% of its body length. The Black Mamba can back off as the threat slowly moves away from it, but if the victim tries to escape, he may suffer further stings.
How Fast Is A Black Mamba?
The black mamba is a diurnal animal and is mainly active from after sunrise to an hour before sunset. She also likes to rest in the sun, the eyes of the victims. The Black Mamba consisered by many as the fastest snake in the world. Besides the high speed at which the snake moves, it can strike with great precision in any direction, even while it is moving fast. When it hits, He throws his head forward to two-fifths of his body length, which means he has a lot of strength.
A significant reason for the black mamba’s fearsome reputation is that it is a very fast snake. Well, for short distances, its speed can also reach around 10-20 km/h, meaning the snake should catch up with someone trying to run away from it. Unless that person is Usain Bolt or something like that, which means he can reach an unimaginable speed of more than 44 kilometers per hour, as happened when he broke the world record in the 100 meter competition in 2009.
If you add that The Black Mamba snake also has a developed sense of sight and smell, can swim reasonably fast, and can wait patiently for quite some time for its victims, you understand why it is one of nature’s deadliest creatures.
What Does A Black Mamba Snake Eat?
The good news is that man is not a black mamba’s natural food because he will not usually be found too much in its habitat. However, the black mamba can enter houses, especially when looking for food or prey (rats or mice, for example).
The nutritional menu of the black mamba is quite diverse and includes large prey (top priority) and small. The snake may hunt birds, other snakes, and smaller animals such as bats, squirrels, rats, or mice. The method of attack varies from case to case and depends, among other things, on the size of the unfortunate victim. In the case of small prey, the black mamba snake usually waits for the regrettable to end its life following the bite, not release it before then. In the case of large prey, the snake is likely to release its grip, let the poison do the work, and paralyze the victim, which should happen within minutes or even seconds.
What Happens If You Get Bit By A Black Mamba?
Speaking of speed, it is essential to mention that the speed at which the black mamba’s venom affects the victim’s body is the greatest among snake species. The speed of the effect depends on various parameters, such as the amount of venom, the area of the bite, and the level of sensitivity of the person. Still, in general, if a black mamba bites him, he may die within about 10-30 minutes, or on average, between one and three hours. In some cases, even two drops of destruction are enough to kill a person or large animal.
The venom of the Black Mamba, known as Dendrotoxin, contains several neurotoxins that will cause a nervous system collapse as long as the person does not quickly receive the serum, a drug that counteracts this venom. The venom damages the nervous system and the heart, causing symptoms such as convulsions, shortness of breath, lack of control over the body’s muscles, and paralysis, which may also affect the respiratory muscles – which causes death. It is clear that the chances of serious injury increase when the person or the animal is bitten several times by the snake, as happens in many cases.
By the way, this toxin is also a pain reliever. This fact explains why experts and scientists have been testing in recent years whether we can combine the venom of the black mamba with painkillers, such as morphine.
Wanted: More Black Mamba Horror Movies
There are horror films that let us face dangerous animals and even snakes; a clear example is the “Anaconda” films. In the case of the Black Mamba, we don’t know many horror movies that have put them at the center, but there are some.
Fair Game / Mamba (1989)
In 1988, “Fair Game,” or as it is called, “Mamba,” was released. This heartwarming love story involves a computer game designer and his wife—at least until the woman leaves him, which causes him to trap her in her apartment and release a black mamba snake inside it. We haven’t seen this movie, but it sure looks… cool?
Venom (1981)
In 1981’s “Venom,” we saw a pretty similar plot, where a group of terrorists tries to kidnap the son of a wealthy boss. Badly for them, they are trapped in his house along with a black mamba snake that got there by mistake. It is important to note that despite this plot description, it is not sure that this is a classic “Creature Feature.” But there is a tension here, an excellent cast (Klaus Kinski, Oliver Reed, and others), and some not-bad scenes in the center of which the snake shows its cruelty.
The Mythology Around The Black Mamba Snake: From Uma To Kobe
We have seen some decent scenes involving the black mamba in some action movies.
Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle
In “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle,” the sequel to the hit movie based on the movie where a group of young people enter a video game (or a box game, in the early version), the group comes across a box containing what they identify as a black mamba snake. Zoologist Franklin “Moss” Finbar (Kevin James), the avatar of the football star in the game they enter, explains the snake and its features. The intelligent character, played by James Black, deciphers some riddles and concludes that the goal is to have a “staring contest” against the snake. It doesn’t exactly work, but in the end, they manage to overcome it.
Actual zoologists may disagree with this scene, but it is entertaining.
Black Mamba Kill Bill
Let’s continue with “Kill Bill,” Quentin Tarantino’s masterpiece. If you remember the movie – and you should watch it and its sequel several times – then you can probably memorize that “Black Mamba” is the nickname of “The Bride,” aka Uma Thurman, who goes on a murderous killing spree following Bill and his friends.
In the excellent second film, there is a scene where Elle Driver stuffs Black Mamba into a suitcase with money. When Bud (Bill’s brother and former member of Bill’s gang) opens the briefcase, the snake bites him several times in the face and kills him. Elle lights a cigarette and recites some facts about the venom of this snake and its deadly effects. Shortly after, “The Black Mamba” causes Elle to lose her other eye, leaving her to lie in her blood next to the same snake.
Why Was Kobe Called The Black Mamba?
If you are knowledgeable about sports or just trivia, you probably know that “Black Mamba” is the nickname of the legendary NBA player Kobe Bryant, who was killed in a plane crash in 2000 at the age of 41. But
Surprisingly enough, it was Kobe Bryant who gave himself this nickname In an attempt to improve his image, which was fatally damaged by the complaint of rape filed against him in 2003 by an employee of a hotel where he was staying, allegedly the night before Bryant underwent knee surgery. The Lakers’ all-time high scorer claimed that the sexual relations were consensual, the complainant decided not to testify against him in a criminal trial, and later, the dispute between them was settled in a civil settlement agreement.
But the damage to Bryant had already happened, causing, among other things, the cancellation of his advertising agreements with names like McDonald’s and Nutella. That’s why he decided to create an “alter ego,” the nickname “Black Mamba,” intended to make a difference between his personality off the court and the basketball player in it, in a similar way perhaps to comic book characters (“You’re not watching David Banner, but The Hulk,” he compared ). His choice of the black mamba is related to how he sees himself on the parquet, as opposed to the court. “When I leave the court, I act like this. I am the deadly snake. I’m cold as ice, bro.”
So after seeing that the Black Mamba is a dangerous snake, but also one that the myth surrounding it is perhaps even more remarkable, we should be happy that most of us will not be able to encounter it in reality. One can hope for more horror films to portray him in all his brutality.
